The Talespinner: Beginning of the Clans
by Summer Eventide
Summary: Thunder, Shadow, Wind, and River. What happened before that fateful day in the clearing of the four oaks? Did they have ties and connections even before the beginning of the Clans?
1. Prologue: The Elders Den

Dustsong gave a contented sigh, snuggling deeper into her newly replaced moss bed. Closing her eyes, she pricked her ears slightly, absentmindedly listening to the ruckus around camp. _This __nest __reminds __me __of __the __time __Cloudear __and __I __saw __a __heather __patch __and __rolled __and __rolled __in __it__…__,_she thought, pushing deeper into the bedding.

Suddenly, a loud crash greeted her as she woke up with a jolt, face-to-face with a young she-cat that Dustsong vaguely remembered-_Graypaw,_she thought. "Why are you here, Graypaw? You ruined my nap!" she growled. Graypaw trembled slightly.

"I-I wanted a story…" Graypaw whimpered, pressing herself into the wall of the den. _Oh __no,__oh __no__…_

Dustsong looked at her incredulously. "You come barreling into me, disturb my nap, and ruin my new moss bed, and all you wanted from me was a story?" Graypaw nodded quietly, not able to say anything. Dustsong leered at her for a moment before laughing. "If that's all you want, then of course I'll comply." She chuckled, settling down on the moss, beckoning Graypaw. Slowly, Graypaw complied, and she sat down.

"What kind of story do you want to hear?" Dustsong asked her kindly. Graypaw surprised her with her answer.

"I want to know the beginning of the Clans!" Graypaw said excitedly, looking like she could jump up and down- startling, considering how she had acted before. "Please…"

Dustsong nodded. "I will try." Dustsong was not a very old elder; indeed, she was one of the youngest. But as she squinted her eyes a bit and thought back as far as she could, as she remembered her mother telling it to her in the warmth of the nursery, her eyes glinted with triumph; she knew it, most definitely.

Graypaw got a little impatient. "Do you know it, Dustsong?"

Dustsong nodded, but was a little curious. "Why would you want to know the history of the Clans? Aren't you too old for this?"

Graypaw shook her head. "No one is too old for a story." She said, impatient. "Go on already!"

"Yes, yes." Dustsong chuckled. She took a deep breath and could almost feel the spirits of the Great Ancients filling the den. She started up the traditional beginning.

"_Listen, listen, gather around, and hear my voice and tale_

_Listen to stories how the humble rise, and the proud fail_

_Slaying foxes, conquering fears, all these I will tell_

_The story of the oak, the tale of the sand, and the ballad of the shell."_

Dustsong looked straight into Graypaw's eyes, and started.

"Once, long long ago, there was a cat named Fang."


	2. Part I: One

"_Fang? Who's Fang?" Graypaw said curiously._

"_So you've never heard of Fang." Dustsong said, her amber eyes glinting. "Fang; the heavy-set tabby with the huge paws, the controller of all lands; Fang, the ruler of all!"_

_Graypaw shivered slightly and Dustsong chuckled. "Fang, the tabby with the brown fur and the blue eyes controlled Twolegplace in those days, though it was not our Twolegplace, but a very large settlement somewhere far away, even farther than the old forest."_

"_What do you mean by control?" Graypaw asked._

"_Fang was a cunning cat, you see; though by all means plain-looking, he was very charming. He convinced his underlings that they needed him to survive, to thrive in the big Twolegplace. They believed him and joined his group, and the mousebrains forfeited their freedom along with it, being forced to be his personal army for his own goals, and slowly starving to death while his Generals and he got as plump as kittypets." Dustsong snorted._

"_I don't get it; how does that relate to the beginning of the Clans?" Graypaw wondered aloud. "The Clans have no business in Twolegplace…right?"_

_Dustsong shook her head. "Not anymore. But…" a small smile formed. _

"_Our story begins in Twolegplace, while Fang was looking for new recruits…"_

The orange tom kit scented the air for any prey. His ears pricked as he heard a rustling in the bushes behind him. Keeping very still, he watched out of the corner of his eye as a small brown body crept out of the bushes, holding a small nut.

_Thunder…_

Someone called. Thunder fidgeted only slightly; nothing would distract him from his prize. Squeezing his eyes shut as tight as he could, he continued his dream about stalking a mouse, a really juicy one, through a…tree place? Many trees? _Forest, _he thought, finally remembering the word. He got closer to the mouse.

_Thunder?_

Someone called again. The tom kit ignored it- he was so close. _One, two, three…_ he counted silently, pouncing on the mouse and immediately ended its life. _Didn't even make a sound, _he thought smugly. As he bent down, he somehow knew that it would be tender and delicious as he prepared to take a bite of prize…

"Thunder!"

Thunder woke up with a jolt on the dirty rag he slept on. Beside him, his three siblings looked at him crossly.

"Finally you're awake, mousebrain." Vine drawled, rolling her eyes. "It's nearly sunhigh!" Beside her, Bubble giggled.

"Why didya wake up so late, Thunder?" Bubble said. "Dreaming again?" When Thunder didn't answer, she giggled again. "You were dreaming about hunting in that foresting again, right?"

"It's called a forest, Bubble." Thunder said, but Cloud started talking like he didn't notice what he said at all.

"Is there anything else he dreams about?" he taunted, grinning at Thunder. Thunder growled at him, causing him to back away. "Alright, alright! Never knew you were so touchy…"

"Well, now that you're awake, get up!" Bubble urged him, tackling him to the ground playfully. Laughing, he had a play-fight with his sister as his other two siblings watched. He was always fond of Bubble- she seemed to have a way of seeing the good in everything, no matter how gloomy it really was.

As he and Bubble lay on their backs panting, their mother came back, two rats dangling from her jaw. "For you and Bubble." She said shortly, placing the rat at their paws. Their mother usually spoke little, but she always took care of them properly, and taught them everything they knew.

Take, for example, the time when Cloud, Vine, and Thunder tried to eat crowfood. _"I've seen a lot of cats eating it, and they're still fine!" _Cloud had said. "_We should try it!"_ Thunder didn't think it was a good idea, but his stomach was growling. Just before they ate it, however, their mother had come running up and stopped them. Though they got a terrible chewing out, Thunder was grateful- who knew what would have happened if their mother hadn't been there?

But the rule of not eating crowfood was not the only thing that their mother stressed constantly. "Never leave the alley alone, and never talk to anyone other than anyone I say you can talk to." When they had asked why, their mother paled. "Never you mind that and just follow what I say!"

So they didn't push it, and over time, they simply learned to accept her rules. Thunder was milling over that particular rule, though, as he ate his rat uninterestedly.

_Why can't we go outside and talk? What's so dangerous about the outside? _He questioned himself. _What could possibly be that bad?_

Suddenly, his mother ran in, her amber eyes terrified. "Hide, kittens!" she said, shooing them to the farthest corner of the alley, behind a trash bin. Confused, the kits did what they were told as they saw a large shadow looming right outside their alley.

"Well, well, well, Queen, what do we have here?" a gravelly voice purred. "Are you hiding kits? You know that all kits are supposed to be given to the Army."

_Army? _Thunder thought, as his mother answered the gravelly voice with a hiss. "I don't know what you're talking about, Stripes." She growled. "There are no kits here. And even if there were, this is outside the Army's influence!"

The voice laughed, a grating sound that hurt his ears. Bubble whimpered at the sound, pressing into Vine's pelt. "You've been sadly misinformed, Queen. Fang owns the entire Twolegplace now. Where are those kits?"

Thunder's mother hissed again and spat in Stripes' face. "That idea's foxdung, Stripes, just like you. Is the Army really so pathetic that it has to lie and scrounge innocent kits off the street to replace most of its ranks that was lost because of just one rat infection?" Queen laughed. "Fang is a foxdunged mousebrain!"

Stripes had dropped his purring voice the moment Queen had spat in his face. "You're not safe anymore, Queen." He growled. "You fell out of favor the moment you ran away and betrayed the Army." He suddenly pinned her down, holding an unsheathed claw to her throat. "Now tell me, where are those kits?"

Thunder's mother struggled, trying to get Stripes off. "I didn't betray any Army, and I said there were no kits here." She growled. "Now leave!"

Stripes shrugged. "If that's what you want…" he said, pressing his claw down further on her neck, drawing blood, as Thunder and his siblings watched in horror. He turned. "We have to do something!" he whispered.

"We can't- mother told us not to!" Bubble said, her eyes big. Cloud nodded at this, agreeing.

"Don't you get it? Mother's going to die if we don't go save her!" Thunder said. None of them stirred. "Fine," he growled, "I'll go there myself!"

"No, Thunder!" Vine hissed, but it was too late. Thunder had come out of their hiding place and growled at Stripes.

"Leave mother alone!" He growled at Stripes, unsheathing his claws. Stripes merely laughed in reply.

"So that's their little hiding spot." Stripes said, chuckling in mirthless laughter. "Well, no matter. Bring out your other siblings."

Hesitantly, Vine, Cloud, and Bubble came out from behind the trash bin, glowering at Stripes.

"No kits, huh, Queen? Well, this is what you get for lying." Stripes laughed, preparing to swipe his claw over their mother's throat. Thunder stopped him.

"Wait!" he said. "I-If we go with you…without a fight...will you not hurt mother?" Thunder said, trembling slightly. His siblings looked at him disbelievingly as Stripes pretended to think for a moment.

"Hmm…of course." Stripes said. "It seems like a fair deal."

He got off Queen as the kits swarmed around her. "Mother, are you alright?" Cloud asked softly.

Queen got up. She didn't say anything about what they had just promised, but looked at them all. "I'm fine." She said. "But you need to know something. You have gotten yourselves into something that you will probably never get out of, and I can't guide you. Stripes will probably find a way to break you through anything you agree to or say. Life in the Army is tough, so don't break the rules, don't complain, and don't challenge Fang and the Generals." She looked at them with a hard expression. "You understand?" They all nodded. "Alright, go now."

They obeyed, leaving her as she started to stand. "You are free to leave." Stripes said, back to using his purr. "Go on." Queen looked at Stripes suspiciously before leaving. Thunder relaxed. _Mother's safe, _he thought. _But what did she mean by what she said?_

It happened in the blink of an eye. One moment she was walking out, the next she was lying on the ground, twitching feebly.

"Mother!" Thunder cried, running to her. Two cats then stepped out of the shadows, their claws still bloody, and stopped him. Vine growled at Stripes.

"You agreed you wouldn't hurt her!" Vine said. Stripes merely grinned.

"I said _I _wouldn't hurt her. And I didn't. My squad did." Stripes replied. "Now, kits, you're coming with us."

Thunder felt numb, unconsciously complying when they ordered them to follow them out of the alley. He didn't hear Bubble's sobs, or Vine and Cloud's protests. All could hear was his mother's voice, repeating the same words in his head:

_You have gotten yourselves into something that you will probably never get out of, and I can't guide you._

What had they gotten themselves into?


	3. Part I: Two

"_That's terrible!" Graypaw murmured. "Imagine having to watch your mother getting killed…and he was barely apprentice age, too!" she continued as she thought about how she would have acted if she was in Thunder's place._

_Dustsong nodded. "It was indeed a tragedy. Thunder never forgot his mother, though, and remembered the incident for the rest of his nine lives."_

_Graypaw cocked her head. "What do you mean?"_

"_Have you ever wondered why we call nursing mothers 'queens'?" Dustsong asked her._

"_Well…" Graypaw trailed off, thinking. "Of course- Thunder's mother was named Queen, wasn't she?" Graypaw said, looking very proud of herself._

_Dustsong purred with approval. "Exactly so. Thunder did this, cats say, in the hope that the queens would be inspired by his mother. Now, let us continue."_

"_Stripes, Thunder, and his siblings reached the encampment by sundown…"_

Thunder was very, very tired.

He, Stripes, and his siblings had walked from early sunhigh to sunfall, and the last slivers of the sun's light disappeared behind ugly gray Twoleg buildings. His body hurt, his joints ached, and his paws were callused and starting to bleed from the hard road they walked on.

"We are here." Stripes said, showing no discomfort at all during their journey. Thunder could hear Bubbles panting, and he let out his own sigh of relief at the prospect of rest, quickly replaced by a feeling of dread.

The encampment was still full of activity, even though it was now sundown (his mother always said that you should be resting at least by then). Cats of different sizes, colors, and ages, from grown cats to the smallest kit that looked to be no more than 4 moons old, were sparring, talking, running, or returning with prey.

_I can't help you here, _whispered his mother's voice. _You've gotten yourselves into something you will never get out of…_

"Keep moving!" one of the guards said, shoving Thunder forwards into a large den made of various broken Twoleg materials. He went with a jolt, but not before glaring at the guard with an expression of hate.

Thunder adjusted his eyes to the lighting in the den. There were random objects around the room that caught light and glimmered, some dirty rags, and even a dented trash bin in the corner. But the thing that impressed him the most was the large mound of Twoleg trash at the very back of the cave, and the large brown furred tabby that sat on it.

Stripes bowed to the tabby reverently. "Lord Fang, here are some new recruits." He said in a lofty voice that nearly made Thunder laugh. The tabby nodded.

"Bring them to the front." Fang ordered, with a smooth voice like honey. "These are Queen's kits, correct?"

"Yes, Lord Fang." Stripes said, signaling the guards to push the four cats to the front. Just before, though, Stripes whispered something in their ear. "Bow low before him." He hissed. "The Lord Fang commands great respect."

Thunder found himself trembling before the icy blue gaze of Fang's eyes, feeling it pierce him. He sensed Cloud immediately bowing before Fang, followed hesitantly by Bubble and Vine. _I should bow too._ He thought, too scared to even look up when a thought entered his mind.

_He killed Mother. _A mischievous voice in his head whispered. _Took you from your home and murdered her in cold blood and left her in a dirty alley. All because they needed to fill up their ranks. I bet that her dead body is attracting the flies and rats right now, and you want to bow to the person who caused her death?_

"Well, what are you waiting for? Bow!" one of the guards shouted. Thunder stayed still, frozen to the spot.

_What are you waiting for, then? _

"No." Thunder whispered, though no one could hear him. "No." he said louder.

"What did you say, you odious little mousebrain?" Stripes growled at him, as the guards began approaching him, teeth bared and claws unsheathed. Bubble, Cloud, and Vine looked at Thunder in terror.

"No! I won't bow to you! You killed Mother! "Thunder shouted, daring to look into Fang's eyes as blue met amber.

The guards came upon him then, as Thunder kicked and yowled and bit and slashed and tore at anywhere his tiny, unsheathed claws could reach as his siblings looked on in terror. Suddenly, a sound entered his ears; it sounded foreign and strange. _Laughter, _he realized. _But who would laugh at a moment like this?_

Thunder found his answer when he looked up again and saw Fang chuckling and laughing, something that contrasted with his early image of a serious, tough leader. Stripes shared the same thought.

"Lord Fang, would you like me to, ahem, _exterminate_ this incorrigible little pest?" Stripes asked tentatively once the tabby's laughter had died down. "If you want to punish this disrespectful kit, we can have it arranged."

"Of course I wouldn't want this kit to get killed!" Fang said, his callousness at using the word _kill _sending a shiver down Thunder's spine. Stripes was flabbergasted.

"B-But he didn't respect you in the way you should be-" Stripes began, quieting under Fang's sharp gaze.

"Are you contradicting me, Stripes?" Fang said quietly, anger beneath his honeyed voice. "Who are you to tell me what I should do, and who are you to disobey my orders? You are simply a low-ranking General. Let the kit live." Stripes nodded meekly. "Now tell them the procedures of the Army."

Stripes cleared his throat, turning to the kits, "You will wake up as soon as the sun rises. You will be given positions based on your weaknesses and strengths. You will then be put into platoons with the other young ones. Training starts at dawn, when the true color of the sun rises, and ends at moonhigh. You will be allowed to eat before dawn, and late sunhigh. However, those," Fang glanced at Bubbles as he said this, "Who cannot do their respective duties, or breaks any of the rules, will be denied food for a quarter-moon, or death. Are we clear?" The kits nodded. "Good. Now, I should show you your dens."

The kits followed Stripes out of the den, watching as the last few cats slipped into their designated sleeping area. Stripes stopped at a large, rusty Twoleg contraption.

"This is where the Guards sleep. You," he said, pointing at Cloud, "And you," pointing to Vine, "Will sleep here." Cloud and Vine nodded, looking at Thunder for a moment before going into the hollowed out cylinder together.

"Here," Stripes said, "Is where the Hunters stay. You will stay here." He said, pointing to Bubble. Bubble started walking towards it hesitantly as Stripes continued padding along. It seemed that it took forever until he reached a small Twoleg den made of wood and the same rusted material that Cloud and Vine disappeared into.

"This is the Fighter's den." Stripes said briskly. "You will stay here."

Thunder started to walk up to the entrance, tired after a long day, but Stripes suddenly growled at him, blocking the entrance.

"Listen. I know you impressed Fang, you little mousebrain, but you can't fool me. Fang may be my superior, but I'm much more higher ranked than you. You answer to me, got it?" Stripes hissed. Thunder nodded timidly.

"Good. Now, go in." Stripes said, his animosity fading away quickly as Thunder entered the Twoleg den.

It was a bit small, and smelled a bit rotten. Thunder's eyes adjusted quickly as he tried to find a place to sleep. Stepping carefully over the sleeping cats occupying the den, he settled down at the very back next to a furry black object.

"Ouch! Watch it!" the black object hissed. Shocked, Thunder backed away from the cat, looking at him balefully with bright green eyes.

"S-Sorry, I couldn't see you properly!" Thunder stammered. The black she-cat grumbled.

"I hate this black coat. I can't even get a good night's sleep whenever someone thinks I'm a furry Twoleg rag!" the she-cat said, then stopped and squinted. "I've never seen you around here before. Who are you?"

"I'm Thunder. What's yours?" He said, but the she-cat had already closed her eyes again. Sighing, Thunder settled down next to her, missing the warmth of his siblings and mother.

_I shouldn't have let you die, mother…_Thunder thought, feeling drowsy. _If I didn't come out from the hiding place, this wouldn't have happened! _Thunder shook his head. What's done is done, his mother always said. She was dead, and no pleading and regrets would get her back.

_I will be here with you, always. _

Thunder opened his eyes with a jolt, his eyes looking to the black she-cat if she had said what he heard, but her eyes were still shut. Thunder sighed once again, closing his eyes.

_I swear I heard her voice…_

And as Thunder started to drift off into the land of dreams, he heard, faintly, someone saying:

"My name is Shadow."


	4. Part I: Three

"_Shadow?" Graypaw repeated, incredulous. "As in, _the_ Shadow, founder of ShadowClan?"_

_If Dustsong was annoyed by this, she didn't show it. "Of course, Graypaw. Do you know of any other relevant Shadows in the Clan's history?"_

_Graypaw shook her head slowly. "No," she said. "But…I thought ShadowClan and ThunderClan were mortal enemies?" Dustsong looked at her strangely for a moment before laughing out loud._

"_Are you sure?" Dustsong chuckled. "Of course, they would fight-there is no relationship too perfect not to, some way or another- but they were not enemies. Shadow, River, Wind, even Thunder, however, always had a little darkness in their hearts, like any great leader, and that darkness can cause animosity between the greatest of friends."_

_Graypaw nodded. "Alright…but speaking about that, where are Wind and River? Shouldn't they be in this story?"_

_Dustsong nodded. "I'm getting there."_

"_Thunder dreamt in the darkness of the Twoleg shelter, letting his dreams drift off…"_

"_Never should have gone out…never should have…"_ Thunder murmured.

"_Wake up, Thunder." _a gentle voice said.

Thunder opened his eyes with a jolt as he looked wildly around his surroundings. _"Where am I?" _he said out loud. Well, he certainly wasn't in the Twoleg shed, or in the Twolegplace at all. He was in a large patch of grass that seemed to go on forever, like the 'yards' that the Twoleg cats lived in, but it was more…wild than that. The gently shimmering grass seemed to have grown out here on its own…

"_You are in the Field of Stars, my dear Thunder." _

Thunder turned around to face a familiar face, shimmering bright lights twinkling on her pelt, face, and warm eyes…

"_Mother!" _Thunder cried, running up to her and burying his face in her pelt. Queen smiled, nuzzling him.

"_You're alive?"_ Thunder meowed. His mother shook her head.

"_I am not, I'm afraid."_ Queen answered sadly. _"This is just a dream, Thunder. As soon as you wake up, I will disappear."_

Thunder shook his head wildly. "_No! I won't let you go! I won't lose you again…"_ he said quietly. Queen laughed, a warm sound that shook Thunder from his head to the tip of his tail.

"_Don't worry, my dear Thunder, I would never leave you."_ She purred.

"_But, you said that…"_

"_Look up."_ Queen interrupted. Thunder did as he was told and gasped. The night sky was full of twinkling lights, so unlike the harsh, artificial Twoleg lights. They made patterns in the blackness, filling Thunder with the feeling of wonder.

"_What…what are they?"_ he whispered, entranced.

"_Stars."_ Queen said simply, turning to him. _"As long as you can see the stars, I will guide you, forever and always. Someday, you might even see me again."_ Her affectionate tone then suddenly turned serious. _"You have been here too long, and you must go back to the land of the living. My son, something is stirring, a great destiny._ Your _destiny. You are Thunder. You must find Air, Water, Darkness, and…"_ Thunder heard her voice hesitate, _"…before it's too late."_

"_What?"_ Thunder asked her. _"What are Water and Air and Darkness? Why do I need to find them?"_ Even as he said that, light started to fill the dream.

"_Not_ what_, my dear Thunder." _Queen whispered, barely heard. "Who."

"Wake up, you lazy foxdung!"

Thunder felt a sharp pain in his side as he groggily woke up, staring dumbly at the long gash on his side, dripping blood. He looked up at the tom above him, grinning evilly.

"Finally awake, huh? You'd think that someone chosen by Lord Fang himself would have a better sense of time." he grinned. "That will teach you to wake up earlier next time." With that, the tom turned away, gesturing him to get at the back of the line that he suddenly noticed were watching him.

"What was that for?" he whispered to the black cat ahead of him-_Shadow_, Thunder remembered.

Shadow took a long time before replying. "Didn't you know that all Fighter cadets are supposed to wake up before sunrise?" she hissed at him. "You're lucky you got off so easily."

_Easily? _Thunder thought, but his thoughts were interrupted by his stomach rumbling.

"Oh yeah, mousebrain, you missed breakfast." Shadow said smugly. "I guess you'll have to wait until late sunhigh."

Thunder's stomach groaned in protest, but he gritted his teeth. The tom abruptly stopped in front of an endless field that looked nothing like the one in his one in his dream. The grass was dried and withered, and various Twoleg monsters that didn't look like they had been moved in a long time.

"Alright, younglings!" the tom yowled. "We are going to have some battle training today. Ruby, you're with Spike." Immediately, two cats, one of them barely out of kittenhood, went out and started to spar with claws unsheathed. "Shadow," the she-cat stepped forward, "You go with Crook." A large, heavily-built tom growled at her, but Thunder had a feeling that she wasn't going to be beaten that easily.

This continued as Thunder tried not to concentrate on his empty belly. "You with…" the tom looked around at the cats violently clawing each other, then back at him. "Looks like you have no partner…what should I do with you?"

"How about me?" an unfamiliar voice said. Thunder turned around as a lithe cat with sharp yellow eyes walked towards them. The cat glanced at the tom. "Sorry I'm late."

Thunder expected for the tom to unsheathe his claws and punish the cat like he did, but all the tom did was narrow his eyes at the cat. "Don't be late again, cadet." He said gruffly. "You," he said, flicking his tail at Thunder, "Spar with her." He turned around, and Thunder thought he heard him mutter, "Just because she's Stripes' kit means she can show up late?"

The she-cat grinned at him. "New recruit, huh?" she said cockily. "Show what you've got!"

Thunder hung back for a moment before pouncing straight at her…when she was nowhere in sight. He looked around wildly before hearing her voice behind him.

"Looking for me?" she said in her cocky voice. _How did she get there so fast? _, he thought in shock. Before Thunder could react, the she-cat pounced on his back, claws unsheathed. Thunder yowled in pain as her sharp claws dug deeper into his tender back. Quickly, he dropped and rolled, managing to dislodge the cat on his back. He turned to see the she-cat drop to the ground, disoriented.

While the she-cat lay on the grass, Thunder pounced, claws unsheathed as he raked them across her exposed belly. The she-cat shook her head and stared at the blood seeping out before she screamed in rage.

"I'll get you for this!" she yowled at him, getting up slowly. Then, quickly, she knocked him to the ground, somehow having enough strength to keep him down as she clawed his belly over and over.

By then, the other pairs stopped sparring temporarily to watch. Thunder, through the pain-induced haze that fogged his vision, saw Shadow looking at him passively. For a moment, he thought he saw Bubble, Vine, and Cloud in the crowd as well. And…

Queen smiled at him. Though her mouth did not say anything, he heard her voice, as clear as day. _You know what to do, Thunder. _She said. _I know you do._

Thunder suddenly snapped back to reality, watching the she-cat standing over him with a proud smile. He felt strength flow through his body as he got up.

The she-cat's smile faltered. "How?" she asked, more to herself than to him. Wasting no time, Thunder pounced head-on at her once again, but he managed to knock her over. She struggled under him.

The other Fighters were yowling now, but Thunder didn't care what they were saying. The she-cat flailed under him, getting a lucky strike on his abused belly.

Thunder, in pain, backed away. The she-cat, grinning once more, pounced straight at him…

And she ended up with Thunder's claws at her throat.

The Fighters immediately grew silent as Thunder stood over her. One swipe of his claws, and she wouldn't spar again. Thunder looked over at Shadow before unsheathing his claws, releasing the she-cat, and promptly collapsed.

"_Is he okay?"_

"_I hope those plants were enough for those belly wounds."_

"_Shh…I think he's waking up!"_

Thunder moaned, eyes fluttering as he woke up, his siblings, Shadow, and the yellow-eyed she-cat around him. Bubble sniffed. "Are you alright, Thunder?"

Thunder nodded weakly. "Where am I?" he asked them. This time, it was Shadow who spoke up.

"Still in the field." She said promptly. "You passed out forever-it's almost moonhigh now." Indeed, the moon, just a tiny sliver in the sky, was almost at the very top. "Don't worry; we saved you some prey this time."

Vine nodded, pushing a small, thin sparrow towards him. "It's not much, but we were lucky to get this, after Stripes' reaction to you beating her." She pointed her tail at the she-cat. "Now, eat."

Thunder ate the meat ravenously, even crunching on the bones. When he was done, he felt significantly better. "Thank you."

"Don't thank us." Cloud said. "If Stripes had his way, you'd be starving for another quarter-moon. It was Stripes' daughter." He said.

Thunder nodded his head at her. "Thank you…" he trailed off, realizing that he didn't know her name.

Then, he recalled how she was able to avoid him time and again, appearing and disappearing without breaking a sweat. She was cocky, yes, but she was as fast as…

"Air?" he murmured. The she-cat looked at him, bright yellow eyes confused.

"Air?" she repeated. "My name's not Air-it's Wind."


	5. Part I: Four

_Graypaw looked at Dustsong incredulously, eyes wide. "Wind is Stripes' daughter? Are you really sure of that, Dustsong? Are you sure that it isn't a mistake? I mean, how could Wind be related to Thunder's enemy? Maybe it's all a mistake, Dustsong-"_

"_Enough." Dustsong interrupted, her eyes sharp. Graypaw cowered. "Does one's lineage affect who you are as a cat, as a warrior, Graypaw?" she said quietly. "No. Though your lineage influences you in some ways, always remember this- you are the one with the power to shape your destiny, and no one else. Nothing can shape your identity for you, Graypaw." She said, even more softly than before, thinking of a tabby with amber eyes. "Nothing."_

_Silence filled the den for a few moments, Graypaw shifting nervously. Finally, though, she cleared her throat. "I'm sorry, Dustsong." She said, paws trembling a bit. _

_Dustsong nodded. "It is alright, Graypaw." She said kindly. "But you needed to learn the Warrior's Way sooner or later. All of us must. Now, do you want to continue the story?" Dustsong asked, looking at the sun peeking its head as it steadily rose higher in the sky._

_Graypaw shook her head vehemently. "We can't stop now, Dustsong!" she said passionately. "It's just getting to the good part! Besides," she added as an afterthought, "We haven't even met River yet. Where is he, anyway?"_

_Dustsong chuckled, the serious atmosphere disappearing with the young apprentice's eagerness. "He is there as well, Graypaw, don't worry, though he isn't who you would imagine him to be."_

_Graypaw nodded. "Can you get on with the story now?"Dustsong sighed. Without replying, she closed her eyes._

"_After the fight with Wind, three moons had passed…"_

Thunder growled at the cat in front of him, a lithe black tabby. Cautiously, Thunder watched her, claws unsheathed. The tabby smiled charmingly, disarmingly before a feral snarl crossed her face, pouncing at Thunder's exposed side.

Thunder reacted quickly, leaving the tabby sprawled on the hard dusty ground. While she was down, Thunder pounced on her, raking his claws on her exposed back. The she-cat yowled in pain, and with surprising strength brought the heavy-set tom below her. Smirking, she raked her long, sharp claws across his belly.

Thunder saw red, but he did not cry out. Grunting, he brought his hind legs up and kicked the tabby in the stomach. The she-cat landed a few mouselengths away, winded. Getting up, Thunder slashed her on her belly for good measure before bringing his unsheathed claw at her throat. The she-cat looked at him with wide eyes, frozen in place.

"Stop!" The Head Fighter, Grain, said. Relaxing, Thunder let the she-cat up, smiling slightly. The she-cat in turn nodded at him formally as she turned away, limping.

"Alright younglings, you may have your meal." Grain said, his voice sounding like the rumbling of the monsters on the Thunderpath. He glanced at the sun as it slowly sank lower, its bright rays making him squint. "But by the time the sun disappears, everyone should come back here. If you don't…" he trailed off. "Now go!"

Thunder turned with the rest of them, sidling next to Shadow and Wind. He nodded at them both, taking in their rather neat appearance. "It looks like you two had a good day." He said, glancing down at the blood that still dripped slightly from his wounds.

Wind snorted. "Oh please, Thunder, cut the compliments." She said, directing them to the fresh-kill pile. "Granite is nothing but a kit. I could kill him in my sleep!" Thunder blinked, remembering the gray tom's superior size. _He was definitely not a kit._

Shadow nodded as well, checking around before taking a plump rat from the pile. "Agreed. They don't really try anymore, do they?" she laughed mirthlessly, recounting her violent fight with Saline while Wind listened on.

Thunder listened at first before getting bored. Trying to drown out Shadow's voice from his mind, he absentmindedly looked up at the darkening sky, smiling slightly at the few twinkling stars that could be seen. Getting up, he padded over to the pile once again.

He wrinkled his nose in disgust as he shifted through the dead, disgusting rat carcasses. It would take forever to get used to the smell. Sighing, he gave up his search for a good meal…

Until he saw a flash of red fur at the bottom of the pile.

His amber eyes widened as he dug to the very bottom, a small pile of dead rats hiding an unlikely treasure- a squirrel. Instinctively, he reached for it before he stopped. He knew that only the higher-ranked cats could eat something other than rats and the occasional bird. He also knew that squirrels could only be found on the other side of the Twolegplace, which meant that they were only reserved for the highest-ranked ones, including Fang himself. He started to pull away when he glanced at the rats around him, feeling nauseated.

_It's just there right in front of you, you know. _A voice whispered. _Do you really want to eat rats, mere carrion that even the crows won't eat? You would eat rats over a meaty, juicy squirrel right in front of you, just because you're __**scared**__? _

Fighting the urge to tell the voice to leave him alone, he shook his head and stared at the squirrel again, before reaching to it once more…

"Back away, please. That's_ my _squirrel." A voice, cold with contempt said. Thunder looked up in shock, face to face with a rather plump silver-haired tom with bright green eyes as cold as his voice. Thunder growled at him.

"I got it first." Thunder said, bringing the piece of prey closer to him. "Why would you say it's yours? Go get another piece of prey, mousebrain."

A flash of anger ran through the tom's eyes before becoming cold once again. "Well, _kit, _you can't eat it, can you? Squirrels are for high-rankers only, so I suggest you back away."

"But you're a cadet too! You're not allowed to eat it too, you know." Thunder pointed out. The tom just smiled, leering at him.

"Actually, I am." The tom said, continuing to smile. Without warning, he suddenly grabbed the carcass out of Thunder's paws. He then turned and ran, surprisingly fast for his size.

Thunder looked at his paws, dumbfounded as his shock started to turn to anger. Getting a small rat from the pile, he stalked back to where Shadow and Wind were still talking about Saline.

"She gets up, and starts clawing my belly like a kit! I could have killed her right then and there when-"Shadow looked up from her story. "Hey, Thunder. You look a bit disappointed." As a reply, Thunder jerked his head back at the silver tom. Wind's eyes widened.

"Thunder, do you know who he is?" Wind asked. Thunder shrugged.

"I thought he was just a cadet." He said. Shadow laughed.

"A cadet? Really? Listen, mousebrain, that's River, Guard Second. That's right, one of Fang's personal guards. He's one of the highest ranked cats in the Army! Listen," she said, "Did you do anything at all to offend him?"

Thunder shuffled awkwardly, keeping his gaze trained on his paws. "Well, I did fight with him over a squirrel…But I saw it first!" Thunder said, trying to defend himself. Shadow shook her head and sighed, closing her eyes.

"He won't view it as that. Mark my words, he'll come after you." She said. Wind nodded.

"I've talked to him several times, Thunder. He thinks _everything _done to him is a serious crime, and he'll get revenge that's much bigger than the cause. Be on your guard." Wind warned him. Thunder nodded, biting a piece of the rat absentmindedly. _It's just a squirrel._

"Rest is over, younglings!" Grain's voice rumbled. "Back to training!"

Thunder got up, digging a pit and tossing the half-finished rat carcass in it. Wind and Shadow did the same as all three of them padded back to the field.

A flash of silver. Thunder stopped as turned around, looking around for movement. Wind turned an eye on him. "What is it now?"

"N-Nothing." Thunder said, confused. "I just swore I saw something silver around…"

Shadow narrowed her intelligent eyes. "It's probably just the moon or something." She said loudly. "Come on, you mousebrains, or we'll be late for training!"

Thunder followed Shadow and Wind as the walk quickly turned into a race. And for a moment, a glint of green could be visible in the darkness.

"Wake up."

Thunder squirmed, a nightmare running through his mind about a giant silver squirrel, trying to eat him and commanding enormous rats… "Not yet…" he murmured.

"Wake up, wake up- Oh, get up, you foxdunged kit!"

With that, Thunder woke up with a jolt, looking once again into a pair of bright green eyes. He resisted the urge to growl. "You." He hissed. "What are you doing here? Go back to the Guard's den!"

River smiled a smile that somehow infuriated him. "Hush, little one." He teased. "We don't want to wake any of the kitty-cats, do we?" he glanced quickly at Shadow, her eyes closed as she gently inhaled and exhaled. "I want to make it up to you."

Thunder narrowed his amber eyes. _Be on your guard, _Wind had said. But he looked so sincere standing there…" What do you mean?" he asked, trying to keep the curiosity out of his voice.

"Ah, you're finally interested." River grinned disarmingly, so like the tabby he sparred with that sunhigh. "While I was eating that squirrel, I was thinking about the disgusting rats in that pile, and how all of you…" here he struggled for a word, "_Lower-ranked _have to eat that filth. So, I decided to share my secret hunting spot with you."

"Secret hunting spot?" Thunder said, incredulous. "You mean not even Fang knows about it?"

River snorted. "Of course." He said. "How do you think I got so plump? Besides, Fang already has everything he needs. I'm sure he doesn't want, need, or care about a small private patch."

Thunder, though truly interested, maintained his wary expression. "What's the catch? No one simply gives away a food supply for no reason."

River shook his head, smiling even wider now. "No catch at all, except this being a limited time offer. You in or not, Thunder?" River challenged. Thunder thought for a moment.

_I'm convinced it's safe, _he reasoned. _If I'm caught, he'll be too. But I still need a backup plan…_

"I'm in." he said. River nodded.

"Let's go then, or else they'll catch us!" he whispered, padding out of the den. Thunder made to follow, but not before kicking Shadow with his hind paws.

As he left the Twoleg shelter, he heard a muffled yowl. He smirked. _There's my backup plan._

River twisted and dived through the camp gracefully, his silver fur shining. Thunder panted, struggling to keep up. Though he was not as fast as Wind, he was certainly more graceful than her, moving though the open stretches of field like water. After what seemed like hours, he finally stopped at a large bramble bush hidden behind a Twoleg monster.

"This is it?" Thunder said incredulously, taking in the barren bush with sharp thorns. River shook his head, rolling his eyes.

"Of course not, mousebrain." He said, pushing away some loose brambles that hid a tiny entrance from view. "This is just the entrance. Now come on!" he said, crawling into the hole. Thunder followed suit.

It was cramped in the low tunnel, yet once again River made it look effortless. Grunting, Thunder tumbled out of the exit, where River was waiting for him. Thunder padded forward, eager to see the hunting spot as his face suddenly fell.

"It's a river." He said dumbfoundedly. And it was indeed an underground river, with nothing much else. "What do you hunt here? Water?"

River rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath. "Fish, of course. Why, you've never tried it?" he asked Thunder.

Thunder made a face. "Fish is…slimy and smells strange." He said, making a face. "Why would you want to eat it?"

River shook his head. "Fine. Some voles come along every once in a while. You should look around. I'll be hunting fish." He sniffed, taking a seat near the river. Meanwhile, Thunder scented the air, looking for a vole. Scenting nothing, he turned farther into the tunnel.

The tunnel, like the journey, seemed to go on forever. Thunder continued to check for any prey, but all he could smell was must. Sighing, he turned around when he heard a noise.

"Who's there?" he said aloud, unsheathing his claws for good measure. Suddenly, he felt himself being yanked off to the side.

"Can you stop squirming?" Wind hissed at him, her yellow eyes narrowed. "Where's River?"

Thunder relaxed, getting up. "He's over there, near the bramble bush entrance." At this, Thunder looked at her in confusion. "How were you able to get here?"

Wind shrugged. "Shadow led me to another entrance. I don't know how she was able to see that hole, but…"

"Let's not talk about that now." Shadow said, padding back up to them. "River's looking for you!"

"Thunder!" River's voice echoed though the tunnels. "Thunder!"

Thunder's eyes widened. "I'll go there." He told the two she-cats. "Follow me, but don't let him see you, alright?" With that, he started to pad back to where River was; the others close on his heels.

When he reached the first part of the tunnel, River was no longer there, only a pile of fish bones marking where he sat and gorged on fish. Thunder looked around, confused.

"River?" he called out, the echo spreading throughout the tunnels as he waited for a reply. But instead of a voice, pawsteps greeted his question, followed by a cry of "They're here!"

Shadow growled, her eyes widening. "We've been led into a trap!" she growled as the pawsteps grew closer. She turned to the both of them. "Go out through the other entrance. Wind, you show him." Wind nodded swiftly.

"You should come with us too!" Thunder protested. Shadow shook her head.

"And let your foolhardiness fall onto the entire Army?" Shadow said, laughing bitterly. "No, it's better for me to take the blame. Wind has her honor to uphold, and you, mousebrain, have your family. I have no one but myself. It's better this way." Shadow snarled. "Now go!"

Thunder stood frozen until Wind dragged him by the scruff into the darkness. Coming back to his senses, he tried to fight Wind. She growled at him. "There's nothing you can do for her right now! Do you want me to take the blame for you as well?" she asked him. Thunder stopped. "Good. Now run!"

Thunder blindly obeyed the order, running as fast as he could, away from river, away from Shadow, away from River's smug voice and Stripes' praise. "What do we have here?" said a voice he knew, a voice as smooth and rich as honey with bitterness under it…

Shadow's yowl only made Thunder run faster.


	6. Part I: Five

**Yes, I'm back. Thank you to Red Petal of Fallen Rose for reminding me of this story ^^**

* * *

><p><em>Graypaw gasped, her eyes wide and her fur sticking up in anger and shock. "River..." she managed to meow after a little while. "River...he...set them up? W<em>...Why_?"_

_Dustsong didn't reply straight away, the young elder's vibrant amber eyes turned away from hers. Finally, she spoke. "Graypaw..." she sighed the name, letting it float around the room like a spirit of StarClan. "River, and Shadow, Thunder, and Wind, for that matter, are just...they were just regular cats, like you and me." She sighed again. "They will always be remembered today as our great and wise ancestors, but when they walked the earth they were still following the paths _their _ancestors lay for them...and for River, his path started with false entitlement and arrogance." _

_Graypaw looked at her seriously, her blue eyes glinting as she tried, with all the knowledge of eight moons, to understand; Dustsong could practically see her thoughts struggling to form coherency. "But...the warrior code, and _honor,_ and..." she sputtered. She got up, claws unsheathing in distress, before settling back down, as quiet as a mouse._

_"It's alright, Graypaw." the elder said kindly, trying to soothe the young, timid apprentice. "You know his story ends; the first leader of RiverClan! He was just a mousebrained kit then, remember?" _

_No reply. Dustsong pretended to be disappointed with the young apprentice. "Speaking of which, since you know the fates of all the characters in the story anyway, there is no need to keep telling it to someone who's acting like she's dead." she began to turn away, but she smiled faintly at the way Graypaw's ears pricked up. "Perhaps I should call Amberfang to get his apprentice out of the elder's den, sleeping like a elder herself. Or maybe I could call Petalstorm to taking you mouse bile collecting." The brown she-cat almost laughed at the way Graypaw's tail twitched at the phrase _mouse bile collecting_. "Or," she purred, purposely elongating the word, "I could ask Swiftwing to leave her kits-"_

_"Her kits?" Graypaw said loudly, cutting her off. She sprung up from the ground, shaking her thick gray fur twice before sitting down. "Not her _kits!" _She made a disgusted noise from the back of her throat. She then hung her head, remembering what she was doing just a few heartbeats ago. "Dustsong...I'm sorry I moped around. I mean, it's just a story, and you're right- I _do _know how it all ends. I-I guess Larchpaw is right; being sentimental about a simple _story _isn't very warrior-like of me..."_

_"Graypaw, don't." Dustsong replied simply to the apprentice, her grey-furred head hanging low. "Yes, your brother is right; sentimentality, when it hinders you, is not the warrior way. However," she said quickly as she saw her sag even lower, "_empathy _is a different thing entirely, Greypaw; a gift that warriors do not always have but what all warriors need. But for the dead _and_ the living, Greypaw. Remember that."_

_"Okay." Graypaw replied, slowly pulling herself up to meet the young elder's eyes. "S-So," she began shakily, but her voice quickly stabilized, becoming full of curiosity once more. "what happened next?"_

_Dustsong shook her head. "I was only half-joking about Amberfang, you know. If you want to stop for now..." She looked behind the apprentice to see the bright greenleaf sun near the top of the sky. "And shouldn't you be with your mentor, anyhow?"_

_"Well...Amberfang already took me on the first hunting patrol, and he said I did really well- I even caught a raven as big as me without it hearing me!" Graypaw boasted, chest puffing up slightly. "He said that I could stay in camp until sunhigh, for battle training, so..." She trailed off, whipping her rather long tail back and forth. "We still have time for a little more of the story, right, Dustsong?", she pleaded._

_"One more part, if you want.", Dustsong meowed, adjusting her body slightly on the nest of moss. "But after this, go to Amberfang." It wasn't a question. At Graypaw's eager nod, she smiled and started up the story again._

_"Shadow, after taking the blame for Thunder and Wind, disappeared for five sunrises and came back changed..."_

"Shadow! Shadow! Come back!" Thunder yowled through the moonlit camp, running towards the black tabby who had been avoiding him for the entire day.

Shadow, upon reaching the field, turned around, one light green eye looking at him distrustfully. "What is it, Thunder? Can you _ever_ leave me alone, like a regular cat?" she growled at him.

"Well, yes, but I'm worried about you!" Thunder said forcefully, padding closer to her and roughly getting pushed away for his troubles. "Why are you acting like this? I'm just trying to help! Come on, Shadow-" Thunder fell silent as a flash of black obscured his vision and felt a stab of pain as her claws raked roughly across his face, still in shock as he fell back, hissing at his friend's unsheathed claws.

The look on Shadow's face was murderous. "You don't get it, do you?" she said softly, stalking around the stunned Thunder like she was on a hunt- and he was the prey. "I should have never helped you. I defend you two kits, all for what? Nothing! Nothing to show for it, for defending my _friends,_" she spit out the word like it was a particularly bad bit of carrion, "from...from..." For once, the normally sarcastic black she-cat was at a loss for words, actually _trembling_, and for a long heartbeat Thunder saw a ten moon old she-cat with scars on her face and her body, visible even in the weak moonlight, one of his few friends, even closer than his own littermates in the past few moons.

But the moment passed, so quickly he was half-sure it was some strange conjuring of his mind, and instead he saw a bristling black she-cat, an enemy, a threat. "Shadow, weren't you the one who told us to run?" Thunder shot back, unsheathing his claws as well, standing at his full height, managing to tower over her. "You're not thinking straight! I know that you got..." he suddenly choked on a mixture of bile and blood that managed to seep into his mouth. He tried again, opening his mouth, but nothing would come out. His tongue felt as heavy as a stone.

Shadow laughed ruefully at him. "Your claws may be sharp now, Thunder, but your mind is still dull. You can't make it here, anywhere, if you can't even say one word. What are you afraid of?" Her feathery tail lashed back and forth as she broke into a humorless smile, taunting him. "Come on, now, Thunder.", she chided. "Are you scared of just a single word?"

_No, _the orange tom thought grimly. _I'm scared about what it represents. _He hacked, spitting the lump in his throat on the ground, not even looking at it twice. "You were tortured." Thunder said simply, in a tone that was soft but clear in the silence around them. "You were tortured...for us. For Wind and I."

"Very good.", the she-cat said dryly, and for a moment Thunder thought that the old Shadow was back. He was at a loss for words, and it seemed she was waiting for a reply, so for a long while they did nothing, standing in the abandoned training field, wasting precious minutes of sleep as the silver half-moon illuminated their world gently in a cold light. When Thunder could stand the silence no longer, he looked up at the few bright stars before taking a deep breath.

"Look, Shadow, what you did was brave. And you shouldn't be ashamed of it." he said, cautiously padding to her side, a few mouselengths away. She didn't snarl or scratch at him like he expected; in fact, she didn't move at all, a black blotch looking as old and as still as the Twoleg monsters all around them. He moved a little closer to her, tentatively touching her pelt with his tail. Still no reaction. "Shadow?" he meowed, and the black she-cat suddenly spoke, her bright green eyes glinting , her still unsheathed claws flexing and tearing into the scraggly grass below her paws.

"Brave?" Shadow repeated softly, as if she was in a dream. "You think I wanted..._cared_ about being _brave?_ Are you...are you mad?", the she-cat said, and suddenly Thunder felt like a mousebrain. Shadow turned one gleaming eye, looking at him, not in the expected hatred, but a kitlike wonder. "I never...I never signed up for this, to be brave. I never _wanted _to be brave. I wanted," she suddenly said loudly, "to just live a probably pathetic life, eating rats and carrion and crowfood, living for a few moons or so before dying with no problems, no regrets. I wanted...I want...my mother." She shuddered. "And he knew that about me, like he knew about my father, about my littermates, about Maya, about _everything._" She shook her head. "About..."

"…your guilt?" Thunder guessed. Shadow growled.

"Yes, Thunder, your guilt. All the things you are sorry for, the memories you'd rather forget." She slowly tore the grass in front of her to shreds. "But you can't forget them, because he knows." She suddenly rose, hackles raised. "Everything. But how? I'll never know. What I _am _sure of, though, is that he knows _your _weaknesses and Wind's weaknesses too. He'll find out about who else was there. I'm sure of it." She swiveled her eyes from Thunder's orange and white face to the stars, which were starting to fade. It suddenly occurred to Thunder that before that she hadn't taken them off him once. "We're wasting moonlight." She turned around then, tail swishing, as she padded leisurely towards camp. _As if we have moonlight to waste at all, _Thunder thought to himself shaking his head. He lifted his head to follow, but by then Shadow had disappeared, blending into her namesake so well it was as if she had never been there at all.

The next morning, after a short and fitful sleep, Thunder found himself against Shadow once more, but this time she didn't hold back. In the circumstances, though, neither did he, and they were a flurry of furious fighting, biting his ear there, raking claws on her belly there. Thunder sometimes hated to admit it, but fighting gave him a rush of exhilaration nothing else could, even if it _was _his friend. _Is she still my friend? _ the tom thought as his air left him from the sound kick Shadow had given him in the belly just as Grain yowled for them to stop. He nodded in approval at the group. "Perhaps soon, you kits will be able to fight off two rats at once." Grain, the Head Fighter, snorted. "Rest, and come back here by sunset." At that, the crowd of cats dispersed, and Thunder was able to see the lithe body of Wind moving towards him, bright yellow eyes shining like it always did when she ran circles around her latest adversary.

"Are you alright, Thunder?" Wind said, Shadow blatantly ignoring the pair as they walked away for their late sunhigh break. As usual, the wiry brown she-cat didn't even pant with exertion, though there was a small but noticeable scar on her flank that Thunder was sure wasn't there this morning. He nodded, eyes following Shadow as she padded away alone.

"Good." Wind said, not even looking at him as she glared at the black she-cat's retreating form. "Let's get out of here." She said to the tom before moving, Thunder following her as they disappeared into the hectic camp.

They said nothing for quite a while as they lay in the sunlight, scrawny half-eaten sparrows forgotten. Finally, the orange tom built up the courage to speak.

"Why are you being so hostile to her?" he asked softly, wincing at the cold glare from yellow eyes that he got in return. Wind bent her face towards him, so closely he could smell the sparrow on her breath, and she whispered.

"Look, you shouldn't have talked to her. Give her time, and she'll _probably _get over it." Her eyes darted away, and she licked her paw nervously. "I know I did." Thunder held still for a moment, suddenly seeing the faint scars that littered her entire body, the last remnants of things best left forgotten.

"You?" he whispered, hardly daring to believe it. "But…I thought you were-"

"Just 'cause I'm the daughter of a low-ranking General doesn't mean total immunity, you know.", Wind said casually. "And in the Army, you mostly go on your own merits, not your father or mother or littermates. I was eight moons- I think you were six, back then?" When Thunder nodded, she licked her paw again. "I was...I was caught complaining about the carrion we had to eat that night, and..." She paused for a moment, and Thunder saw it again; a 12 moon old she-cat with fading scars with terror and hatred in her eyes, someone he didn't know...or perhaps just a cat hidden, a cat no one wanted to see. "And they said that since I felt so entitled, I could go without food for a half moon, to 'let the food speak for itself'. And then I had to ask what made _them _so entitled to all the good food, and I spent that half-moon down in the Pit. Barely enough room to stretch, walls too high for anyone to climb, ground too solid to dig through or rest properly; they only way in and out is barred with some leftover Twoleg materials, long things that make a horrible sound and didn't move. Water came in only once a day, and it was usually poured on my head. I had to tilt my head until I thought it would snap just to get a mouthful or two. I had to make dirt..." she trailed off, her voice suddenly faltering. "But at least...at least it wasn't the Chamber."

"The Chamber?" Thunder repeated, confused. Wind sighed, but once she opened her mouth to explain, a familiar, hated scent filled Thunder's nostrils. His claws unsheathed immediately as he stood to face the newcomer, hating the smug, self-secure look in his cold green eyes, his long, well groomed silver fur, his plumpness, gained from moons of gorging on fish.

"The Chamber is the place of extreme punishment." River said as he sat beside them, the plump tom's breath stinking slightly of fish. "Where only the most terrible go with their most terrible crimes." He smiled lazily. "No one except the condemned and Fang knows what waits beyond its doors; he escorts them inside himself. Most don't even know where it is, and those who do, and are mousebrained enough to go in, or tell...don't come back." He smiled once again at them, as if he'd always been their friend.

"What do you want?" Thunder growled. The silver tom purred in amusement.

"Nothing. I just wanted to visit two friends of mine." he said easily, cleaning himself. Wind laughed.

"If you have friends, River, I'll go become a Twoleg over here." the wiry she-cat said, glaring.

River barely acknowledged her. "And how is dear Shadow, by the way? Hopefully recovered from her...ordeal?" His easy smile turned into a smirk. "I was able to watch some of it, you know. How she yowled! Rosen certainly knows her stuff-"

Thunder knew it was a trap, but he couldn't help himself as he pounced on the arrogant tom, who, with the ease that comes with experience, threw him aside, winding him. There was, however, a tiny but deep gash on River's face, bleeding heavily and staining his shining fur. He looked legitimately shocked before his features morphed into a cold mask of mixed indifference and rage.

"Why, you little-" he started, seething, but a loud yowl interrupted him. Eyes rolling in annoyance before widening in recognition, he quickly got up, throwing another dirty look Thunder's way. "An open Army meeting.", he said in a very clipped tone. "That means come along, you two." With many dirty looks and muttered insults, Thunder and Wind got up to follow.

"I wonder why Fang is calling one now at sunset..." Wind mused. "The trainees are going to lose valuable time, so I guess it must be important. But what?"

They were herded into the center of camp, neatly arranged by groups. Wind and Thunder were at the very back, in the Fighter trainee group. Through Thunder struggled to see or hear anything over the whispers around him- some excited, some agitated, others bored- all that immediately stilled as soon as Fang cleared his throat. His icy blue eyes glinted with a type of sadistic glee that unnerved the tom- and it seemed to have that affect on Wind as well, the wiry brown she-cat pressing again his pelt slightly.

The leader opened his mouth to pour out his voice of honey. "I have called you all here today because-"

_"Graypaw!"_


End file.
